CBI Court Imposes 8-Month Jail Sentence on IPS Officer and Five Others for Illegal Confinement in Punjab
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New Delhi, Dec 20 (NationPress) IPS officer Gautam Cheema, the former IGP of Punjab Police, along with five other individuals, received an eight-month jail sentence from a Special CBI court for their role in the wrongful detention of a person taken from the lawful custody of a police station in Mohali, as stated by the federal investigative agency.
The CBI's inquiry pertained to the illegal detention of Sumedh Gulati from the lawful custody of Police Station Phase-I, Mohali, involving Cheema, Ajay Chaudhary, and four others back in 2014.
The Special CBI Judge in Mohali imposed the eight-month prison sentence and a fine of Rs 39,000 on the six convicted individuals.
The other convicted parties include Varun Utreja (then an Advocate); Rashmi Negi, Vicky Verma, and Aryan Singh, as reported by the CBI.
The case was registered following an order from the Punjab and Haryana High Court on March 4, 2020, which directed the transfer of the investigation of the FIR initially reported at Police Station-Phase-I, Mohali.
Allegations stated that on August 26, 2014, around 11 p.m., Gautam Cheema, then IGP, arrived at Police Station Phase-I, Mohali in an inebriated state, along with Ajay Choudhary and others, and forcibly removed Sumedh Gulati (who was previously arrested that day in connection with another case) in a private vehicle to Max Hospital, Phase-6, Mohali, where a complainant was undergoing treatment.
Furthermore, it was alleged that Cheema unlawfully detained Gulati in the same room and intimidated the complainant, coercing her to retract her complaints against him.
Upon concluding the investigation, the CBI submitted a charge sheet on December 31, 2020, against all six accused.
Following the trial, the court found the defendants guilty and imposed the corresponding sentences.
Cheema is a 1995 batch IPS officer of the Punjab cadre, hailing from Punjab and holding an M. Phil degree.
Last year, the Special CBI Court established charges against Cheema regarding wrongful confinement, assault, criminal conspiracy related to trespassing after preparation for harm, assault or wrongful restraint, kidnapping, and obstructing a public servant in performing their duties.
